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Strategy

Digital Squeegee + Next Level Apparel: Full-Color Decoration for Less

If you think you know all the decoration options available for Next Level Apparel products, think again. The leading apparel supplier has changed the game once more, as now garments can be decorated with the new Digital Squeegee method through their partnership with decorator Pacific Sportswear. Not familiar with this method yet? Don’t worry: We’re sharing everything you need to know.

Digital squeegee

Not only is this method versatile, it’s also fast and affordable. For instance, decorator Pacific Sportswear explains that typically DTG equipment can decorate around 50-80 units an hour. Compare that to Digital Squeegee, which clocks in at about 300-400 units per hour. This opens the door for distributors to fulfill more last-minute and rush orders, since decoration time won’t be a major factor anymore. And the best part? It’s more affordable than DTG too.

Digital Squeegee allows for a wide range of unique decoration options, such as multimedia printing using specialty inks like metallic and glitter. Or, you can see if variable data is a good fit for your client’s project. As long as the base shape stays the same, you can use variable data with Digital Squeegee to switch up the graphics on top. This is great for projects that require some minor personalization, such as sports uniforms or corporate apparel with names on the front or back.

Puzzle T-shirt

Even if you’ve never heard of the Digital Squeegee, you’re likely familiar with the two methods this new technique is based on: screen-printing and DTG (direct-to-garment) decoration. While screen-printing is fast and affordable, you’re often limited to just one or two imprint colors. On the flip side, DTG can produce full-color and photorealistic graphics, but you’re limited on the colors and types of fabrics you can print on. For instance, many fabrics need to be pretreated to be printed on optimally using DTG, or you might have to lay down a light base color to print on top of if the garment’s fabric is too dark. All of these considerations leave distributors with an often-confusing conundrum as they try to figure out which method is truly the best fit for their client’s project.

The new Digital Squeegee method is changing that. You can think of this method as a combination of screen-printing and DTG. Instead of pretreating fabrics, you can simply print down a base (screen-printing) and then print gorgeously detailed CMYK graphics on top (DTG) – and you’re done! The end result? All the flexibility of screen-printing and all the possibilities of DTG without any of the limitations. It’s truly the best of both worlds.

Looking for a good shirt style to pair Digital Squeegee decoration with? Consider Next Level’s 1800 – Unisex Ideal Heavyweight Crew. Because this premium shirt is cut like a tubular tee, decorators don’t need to worry about how imprints will appear over seams. And since this high-quality shirt is so cost-friendly, there’s virtually no client you can’t present it to.

Now that Next Level Apparel garments can be decorated with the Digital Squeegee, a whole new world of decoration possibilities is open to you. Don’t let other distributors beat you to the punch. Begin offering this new decoration technique today to make your services stand out and to set yourself apart as a premier promo apparel distributor.

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